Melaka Hospital Denies Vaccine Queue Jumping Rumours

Melaka Hospital says 3,000 frontliners, comprising 70% of its staff, will be receiving the Covid-19 vaccine in phase one of the national Covid-19 immunisation programme.

KUALA LUMPUR, March 1 — Melaka Hospital has denied allegations of non-frontliners cutting ahead of health care providers for Covid-19 vaccination.

Earlier today, CodeBlue emailed Melaka Hospital to get an official comment on a Facebook post that alleged over 100 political aides are on a list of the public hospital’s vaccine recipients, which supposedly led to the postponement of vaccination for frontline hospital staff. 

“Melaka Hospital firmly denies the viral statement which alleged that the administration of Covid-19 vaccines involves groups that are not frontliners,” Melaka Hospital said in a statement in response to CodeBlue’s email. 

Today, Vaccine Minister Khairy Jamaluddin also firmly said that no Covid-19 vaccine jabs will be given to families or officers of politicians like ministers, state executive councillors, or chief ministers. The government released a guideline defining who the actual frontliners are that will be getting the vaccine.  

Melaka Hospital said 3,000 frontliners comprising 70 per cent of its staff will be getting the Covid-19 vaccine through phase one of the national Covid-19 immunisation programme. 

The Ministry of Health (MOH) facility will be receiving the Covid-19 vaccine in two stages, whereby the first 1,500 recipients will be vaccinated from March 2 from the first stage of distribution. After the second distribution, an additional 1,500 recipients will be getting vaccinated from March 16. 

These recipients are frontliners who treat and manage Covid-19 patients, including staff who are involved in the mobilisation of patients in Covid-19 wards in Melaka Hospital, low-risk treatment and quarantine centres (PKRC), mass screening sites, as well as vaccine teams. 

“As a whole, a total of 3,000 staff will be receiving Covid-19 vaccines, which is 70 per cent of the total Melaka Hospital staff.

“The distribution of the Covid-19 vaccines for other staff will continue to include those who are not in the frontliner category in the next phase.”

Meanwhile, the government hospital also denied allegations made by another Facebook user on the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines among staff at the Emergency and Trauma Department of Hospital Melaka (ETDHM). 

According to Melaka Hospital, a total of 241 staff from ETDHM comprising specialists, medical officers, and medical assistants have been listed to get vaccinated during the first distribution of Phase One that will start on March 2. 

Meanwhile, 100 staff from ETDHM, including 53 house officers, have been listed under the second distribution of Phase One which is predicted to begin on March 16. 

“Overall, all the staff will receive their respective vaccines, except staff who refuse vaccination because they have a previous history of Covid-19 infection.”

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